Page 6 of Darkest Game (The Dark Mafia #3)

I’ve never been one to cuss but in this moment I let myself think: fuck him. Screw these men for taking me from a home where I could be happy after years of unhappiness. Screw them for forcing me to sit in a kennel all night long as if I’m not even human.

And screw them for making me marry the enemy just to hurt my family. Where I’ll be married to a man who clearly doesn’t want me and yet, I’ll be expected to be loyal to him. The whole thing is messed up.

All I can feel is numb.

I don’t even register when a man approaches the kennel right away.

“Hey, pretty girl,” he growls at me. With a gasp, I get up and back to the other side of the kennel, as far away from him as I can get. “Mmm. You are pretty. The boys inside weren’t lying when they said that.”

Even in the darkness, I can still make out the man’s features. He’s short with a round stomach and stinks like beer and cheese. He’s the kind of man my father always warned me about: the kind who thinks they have a right to you but they don’t even come close to deserving you.

If my father could see me right now, he’d be bursting through the doors of the house and killing every single one of the Irish men inside. I wouldn’t be stuck inside this kennel.

For a moment, I worry that Mikhail and Nico won’t come for me. I’m sure Natalya and Sasha are asking for it but how much are Mikhail and Nico willing to risk? I’m not their wife. They have no obligation to me.

“Leave me alone, please,” I whisper, drawing inwards on myself.

If it weren’t for ballet, I’d probably have hunched shoulders by now for how much I curl myself into a ball.

When I was a child, I only got into ballet because my father encouraged it and because he was disappointed Sasha showed no interest in it.

I wanted to make him proud, so I became a ballerina for him.

And then I fell in love with it. Knowing I could move with grace and acting more like Natalya gave me courage.

It gave me a community, even if I wasn’t super close to my fellow dancers. Now, I don’t have any of that anymore.

“Leave me alone please,” he mocks, scratching between his legs. My nose wrinkles in disgust. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Like what?”

“Like you find me gross. You’re not all that either.”

“Please. I don’t want any trouble.”

“You don’t want any trouble.” He scoffs. “Standing there in that cute dress of yours. You’re just asking for trouble. I could come inside there and have my way with you, you know.”

And yet, he doesn’t, which tells me that he doesn’t have the key to open the kennel. Liam locked me in here. Hopefully he’s the only one. I may not like Liam but I’m at least not worried about him trying to rape me. He said it so himself – he has no desire to do such a thing to me.

But this man… I can see the lust in his eyes. He wants to hurt me.

“You know what?” he grunts. “I think I’ll have fun with you in a different way.” And right before my eyes, he unzips his pants and pulls his penis out. I almost gag at the sight. I was always taught to be polite but I don’t think those rules matter anymore.

He wiggles his penis at me. “Like what you see?”

I avert my gaze.

“Look at me,” he growls. “Or I’ll send those dogs in there and have them hurt you.”

I glance at the dogs in the kennel next to mine. They’re asleep for the night.

And that’s when I hear the sound of water hitting the bars of the kennel. Glancing up, I see that the man is… peeing. Straight up urinating on the kennel. Some of the spray manages to hit my dress.

With a scream, I dance away from the spray but he only turns his body, trying to shoot me with his urine.

“Just stop,” I beg. “Please. Just stop.” I keep moving as fast as I can around the kennel but he only follows with his urine. I keep catching glances at his penis and I keep having to stop myself from vomiting.

The man chuckles when his urine dries up. “That’s what you get, girl, for not being nicer to me.”

“What the fuck is going on?” It’s Liam. He storms over to the man and shoves him back. “Sean, what are you doing?”

“I’m showing the girl a good time.”

Liam looks between Sean’s penis and the urine splatter on the kennel. “By showing her your penis? Yeah. I’m sure that’s a lovely time for her.”

Sean scowls. “It was for me. And the girl doesn’t know how to have fun. She looked at me with disgust.”

“Can you blame her? You are disgusting, Sean.”

“Not all of us can be fucking underwear models, Liam.”

“For one thing, I’ve never been an underwear model but I’m flattered you think I could be one. And second, it’s not my fault you stink and look like shit. If you didn’t whip your penis out around girls without their consent, then maybe they wouldn’t look at you with disgust.”

“You kidnapped the girl! Don’t talk to me about consent.”

Liam glances at me and I avert my gaze. “I only kidnapped her for Jack and she was never supposed to be the one. But you don’t see me sticking her with my penis.”

“Word is out that you’re going to be sticking her with your penis soon. Once you’re married.”

“Exactly. Irina and I will be married. So maybe it’s not wise to show my soon to be bride your penis? Huh, Sean? You know how possessive I can get.”

Seans scoffs. “I’ve never seen you possessive over any girl in your life, Liam. You fuck them and then you leave them. You don’t care if they’ve been with other men.”

“You’re right. But Irina is going to be my wife. I may not be happy about it but it’s going to happen. So leave her the fuck alone.”

He holds his hands up in surrender. “Jeez. I didn’t realize.”

“Just go the fuck back inside.”

“Ok, ok. I’m going.”

“But first. Apologize to Irina.”

“For what?”

“For blasting her with your fucking disgusting piss, you idiot.” He smacks Sean upside the head.

Sean grumbles as he turns to me. I would much prefer him just to leave then listen to a half-hearted apology. I wonder why Liam even seems to care enough to make Sean do this. Liam made it very clear not that long ago that he wants nothing to do with me.

“It’s ok,” I say when Sean struggles to speak. “I don’t need an apology.”

Sean starts to leave when Liam grabs him by the back of his jacket and pins him to the metal bars. I gasp.

“Say you’re fucking sorry,” Liam growls.

“Ok, ok,” Sean says. “I’m sorry.”

“For?” Liam prompts.

“For peeing on you.”

“Oh, you fucker. You peed on her? You actually peed on her? We’re mobsters. Not fucking trash.”

“It was funny.”

Liam jams Seans face harder into the bars. “Continue.”

“Ok. I’m sorry,” Sean says to me. “For peeing on you and for making you see my cock.”

“Good.” Liam lets Sean go. “And don’t ever pull more disgusting shit like this again.”

“Got it.” Sean runs back up to the house, leaving me and Liam alone. Again.

“He actually peed on you?”

All I can do is nod.

Liam sighs deeply. “Listen. You’re the enemy in my eyes. I’ve been taught to hate the Russians all my life. But… I’m not going to let you sit out here all night covered in Sean’s beer smelling urine. Come on.” He pulls out a set of keys and unlocks the kennel.

I don’t move because I don’t trust Liam one bit.

He motions at me. “Come on.”

“I’m not a dog.” I sound braver than I actually am.

“Ok?”

“So please don’t boss me around like one.”

He looks at me like I’m crazy and maybe I am but I’m tired of being bossed around. Denis did that for the past two years of my life.

“Fine,” he says. “Do you really want to stay out here covered in Sean’s urine?”

“No.”

“Good. Then come on.”

Slowly, I step out of the kennel. Liam instantly grabs my arm so I can’t run. That didn’t even cross my mind. We’re in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by trees and these men have dogs. Even if I tried to run, they could hunt me down. I’m better off staying put so Mikhail and Nico can find me.

If they’re coming for me.

Liam brings me into the main house. Sean is in the living room, talking to the other men. There’s around ten of them total. Jack is there and he sets his eyes onto me the second Liam and I enter.

“What is the meaning of this?” Jack asks, motioning at me. “Why are you bringing her inside?”

“Sean pissed on her. I’ll get her some new clothes. Let her take a shower.”

“No.”

“Why not? You’re going to make me marry her soon. I’d rather her smelling good than not. And last I checked, you wanted to fuck her on our wedding night so I suspect you want her to smell good too, do you not?”

Jack looks between me and Liam before he motions to a hallway. “Fine. But make it quick. She’s our prisoner. Not our guest.”

Liam guides me down the hallway to a bathroom. “Take a shower. I’ll be back with some clean clothes you can wear.”

“There are no other women here,” I force myself to speak.

“Not at the moment but some women come by on occasion. They leave behind clothes. I’ll get you some. And don’t think about leaving the bathroom. For your own benefit. And lock the door. You don’t want Sean wandering inside when you’re naked, now do you?”

I nod. Liam continuously tells me that he doesn’t care for me and yet, he seems to not want me to get hurt. None of it makes any sense.

Once he walks away, I shut the door behind me but I notice that the lock is broken. There’s nothing to prop against the door so I’ll just have to take a quick shower before any of the other men try to enter.

It’s strange getting naked in a strange bathroom inside a house full of Irish mobsters. My father would tell me to keep the urine stained dress on if it meant protecting my modesty. But I can’t wear a dress that a gross man like Sean peed on. I just can’t.

The shower water is warm at least. I let myself get lost in it for just a moment and forget where I am. Forget that I’m a prisoner. Forget that I’m going to be forced to marry a man I want nothing to do with if Nico and Mikhail don’t find me in time. And forget how handsome Liam is.

He’s disarmingly handsome and I don’t know what to make of that.

A knock on the door makes me jump. “Uh…” It’s then that I realize there are no towels in the bathroom. How does a bathroom have no towels?

Liam wiggles the doorknob and then opens the door. “Why isn’t this locked?” He stops when he sees me naked.

I grab the shower curtain and wrap it around myself. “It was broken.” My face is on fire. “And there’s no towels.”

He shakes his head. “Right. I’ll grab you one.” He shuts the door behind him and returns within seconds with a towel. He makes no move of hiding his eyes as he hands it to me.

I keep the shower curtain clung to my body with one hand as the other one takes the towel from him and I quickly wrap it around myself. “Why are you looking at me?” I whisper.

“You’re going to be my wife soon. Might as well see what I’ll be getting.” His voice is light but when I look into his eyes, I see an anger there.